Guard Dogs and Kittens
by Iryann
Summary: Set on season 5. After Crowley starts helping them but before the final showdown. Castiel and Dean have an unfortunate encounter with one of the princes of Hell. Now Dean's curses are reduced to angry growls and Cas is missing.
1. Chapter 1

**A.N. **_I've always liked kitty!cas and dog!dean stories. I saw a few pictures on deviant and tumblr the other day that sort of sent the animal muse to me. And if I don't write this down I feel like it'll stay there forever. Hope it's not too cliche._

**A.N.2. **_To those reading 'And The Heavens Split in Two', I have every intention of finishing that story. But I've hit a huge stalemate. I promise I'll get back to it as soon as I can, but I just can't get anything done yet. I'm sorry ;-;_

**Disclaimer: **_Not mine. Of course._

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><p>Bobby sighed and finished his glass of whiskey before closing an old book and glaring at the pile of manuscripts, journals and old tomes on his desk. He'd been at it for hours and he still couldn't get on a way to catch the devil unawares.<p>

He was about to roll his chair to his bedroom to take a well-deserved nap when the phone rang loudly, making him jump. Grumbling a few curses under his breath, he rolled his eyes up to the ceiling and picked up.

"Singer Salvage."

"_Bobby! Bobby, I need your help! Dean's—stop! Just stay quiet! Let me talk to him!_ " A deep frown furrowed the old hunter's brow. He glanced at the phone. Whatever Sam was trying to say, it was hard to understand him with all the loud barking going on in the background. The hell kinda mess had those boys gotten themselves into now?

"Sam, what the hell is goin' on? Where's Dean?" He demanded, maybe the older Winchester would be able to talk over that _dog_. "Shut the dog up already, ya idjit!"

"_I can't!"_ Louder barking ensued, and Bobby rolled his eyes and considered hanging the phone on the boy. Then Sam said something that made his eyes narrow, _"Dean, shut up already!"_

"Boy, I just spent seven hours straight at the books, don't tell me your brother's gotten himself in trouble again."

"_Uh…he kinda has?"_ The old hunter heaved a sigh and looked heavenward for patience he knew he wouldn't get, _"I don't exactly know what happened but—"_

"The hell do you mean, _you don't know what happened_?" he demanded. Sam let out a frustrated scoff.

"_I'm not exactly the _dog whisperer_, Bobby!"_ Bobby rubbed his face.

_Balls._

So that idjit had really gone and gotten himself turned into a dog.

"Well, don't look at me, boy. I ain't got any _canine_ language skills that I know of." He paused, "Have you called Cas?"

"_That's the thing! I don't know where he is." _Sam's voice sounded worried, and Dean had started barking again. _"Dean, we'll find him. Just calm down."_

Bobby was getting too damn old for this.

"When's the last time you saw him?" He asked as he rolled his chair towards the giant pile of books on his desk.

"_He and Dean went to check out a lead for the case. When they didn't come back, I went looking for them and Dean was…well, Dean was already like this. Couldn't believe it at first, but it's really him, Bobby. Can't say I've ever seen a German shepherd with green eyes."_

"What were they looking for?"

"_Some creeper cat guy that two of the witnesses mentioned. We thought he might be a witch or something but…"_ Sam sighed, and Bobby could almost see him running his hand through his hair, _"I don't know, Bobby. I think we might have bumped into something big."_

"Ya _think_?" He pinched the bridge of his nose. "Alright, have you checked the guy's house? Any sign he might come back?"

"_Yeah, I did and…no, I don't think he's coming back. Place was wiped clean. Only clue we have is _Dean_ and I'm not even sure how to ask him. But he's really freaked out, Bobby, it's gotta be something bad."_

"Alright, alright, then _get yer asses over here_ and we'll think of somethin'."

"_Okay…alright, thanks, Bobby."_ The line was cut, and Bobby tossed the phone on his desk, heaving a sigh.

He really _was_ getting too old for this.

* * *

><p>Dean practically <em>bolted<em> out of the impala as soon as they reached the salvage yard. Thankfully the hunt had only been a few towns over, and it didn't take more than a couple hours or Sam was sure Dean would have jumped out of the car and ran here himself.

A string of angry barks that might as well have been a firm _'Sam, get your ass out of the car!'_ snapped him out of his reverie and he stepped out with a sigh, "Okay, okay, sorry, I'm coming."

With a huff of approval from the dog, they hurried to Bobby's door, the old hunter already waiting for them on the porch.

To say Bobby's expression was astounded would have been an understatement, but Sam couldn't really find it in himself to be amused as a very anxious German Shepherd rushed past Bobby and inside the house, paws scratching the old wooden floor in their haste.

"I'd been hopin' I'd overdone it with the whiskey again," Bobby mumbled before rolling back inside. Sam chuckled and shook his head before following.

"I wish."

* * *

><p><em>Dean waited impatiently for his brother and Bobby to get inside. They needed to find Cas. Who knew what that demonic bastard was doing to the angel…cat? The creepy son of a bitch had turned Castiel into a kitten and basically stuffed him in his pocket.<em>

_Dean growled at the memory, the sound vibrating deep in his chest._

_Belial._

_That's what the bastard had presented himself as, and the way his eyes had been focused on Cas had made Dean's skin crawl. Whatever the demon had saved for the angel could be nothing good. It seemed like he was planning on keeping Dean and Cas as animals until Lucifer got what he wanted though, so hopefully Cas would be okay._

_He had to be okay._

_Dog or not, Dean would not be responsible for his actions if anything happened to the angel._

_Now he just needed to make Sam and Bobby understand this and they could start looking for the kitten. He shook his head. Turning into a dog had only increased the protectiveness he felt for the fallen angel, especially after seeing him helpless in the hands of that perverted asshole._

"Alright, so what do we do now?" _Dean's ears twitched as his brother and surrogate father entered the living room._

"Start readin'." _Bobby sounded about as confident as Sam looked, and Dean watched them gather around the old desk before lying down, setting his head between his front legs with a whine._

_This seemed to turn the hunters' eyes to him, and Sam gave him his patented puppy look—which now only seemed incredibly ironic to him—and tried to reassure him, _"We'll find him, Dean."

"With that pitiful hunch on your shoulders, I doubt you'll find anything, Jolly Green."

_Dean raised his head and growled at the owner of the smoky voice who was leaning calmly against the doorframe, his hackles rising as the demon turned an amused pair of eyes towards him._

"Dean, I love the fur, really." _He chuckled, _"The whole literal guard dog look definitely suits you."

_Dean snarled at the demon, rising to his paws, his ears flat against his head as he fought the urge to lunge at him and rip his throat out. Very tempting._

'_You shut your mouth, you smarmy dick.' He growled._

_Crowley raised his eyebrows, amusement evident in his eyes,_ "Always so eloquent."

_Dean forgot about his anger at the realization that the demon could understand him, ears straight as he tilted his head curiously. He could tell hostility had been set aside as Sam took an urgent step towards Crowley._

"You can understand him?"

_Crowley pointed at himself suggestively as if to say 'Hello. Demon.'_ "You think demons only walk around in human meat suits? I've been a serpent myself a few times. Of course I understand him, _moose_."

_Sam ignored the jab, Dean could already see his confidence rising, _"So then you can ask him who took Cas?"_ It was a statement more than a question._

"I already have a good idea of who did it," _Grey eyes turned to Dean, _"Name _Belial_ ring a bell in that little canine head of yours?"

_Dean growled angrily in response, already picturing what he'd do to that asshole._

'_Yeah, that's the dick's name.'_

_Crowley sighed, _"Thought so." _Turning his eyes back to Sam and Bobby, he rolled his eyes, _"Leave it to your darling pigeon to get taken by a demonic celebrity with a thing for fledgings."

_Sam frowned worriedly, while Dean let out another low growl_, "What? Why _fledgings_? Does Belial know Cas?"

_Crowley rolled his eyes_, "Well, let's just say our friend _Cas _is not exactly the oldest angel in the group. In fact, I happen to know he's one of the youngest."

"What's that gotta do with Belial?" _Bobby asked. Dean let out a worried whine._

_The demon raised an eyebrow at Dean's reaction, but actually looked a bit grim when he answered_, "Belial is one of the princes of Hell. Meaning he was thrown out the Country Club with Lucifer all those millennia ago."

_Bobby nodded_, "So he's a fallen angel."

_Crowley grinned_, "I knew you were the smart one around here, darling." _Bobby glared and the demon rolled his eyes, _"Anyway. Let's just say Belial's thoughts were…_naughtier_ than they should have been, even before he fell. And little Castiel was just an innocent, little fledging then. Needless to say Belial grew somewhat…fond…of your little cherub."

_Dean growled, adding a furious bark for good measure. _

'_That sick bastard.' He snarled. The thought of Cas stuck as an innocent kitten in that pervert's claws made Dean's anger and worry grow._

_Sam shared a concerned look with Bobby, glancing at Dean before turning back to Crowley, _"So do you know how to find him?"

"Honestly, I thought you'd have more confidence in me by now."_ He raised his eyebrows and looked around, _"No? Pity. Anyway, since you asked so nicely, _yes. _I know where to find Belial. But, against my better judgment, I suggest you seek the help of another halo before you go rescue our little angel in distress."

_Sam frowned, _"_Who_? We only know—You're kidding. _Gabriel_?"

_Dean flopped down on his hind legs with a huff. 'Well then we're screwed. Bastard will probably laugh at us if we even try to ask for help.'_

"You'd be surprised," _Crowley answered him, amusement in his voice and the curl of his lips, _"I bet that diabetic lump with wings will be happy to help once you mention his baby brother."

_Sam looked at him in disbelief, _"Who, _Gabriel? _Last time he saw Cas he zapped him God knows where. He came back pretty beat up."

"That's too bad. He's your only hope of getting to the prince of Hell without all ending part of the cast of a Disney film. So I suggest you summon him."

_The hunters shared uneasy looks before giving in._

'_Alright, then. Let's do this.'_

* * *

><p><em>Castiel opened his eyes blearily as he was tossed carelessly on a desk, letting out a weak and confused mewl as he took on his surroundings, slowly trying to stand up. Looking down at his tiny paws, memories of his and Dean's encounter with Belial came flooding back to his mind, and he looked around with renewed alarm before trying to take flight.<em>

_To his horror, nothing happened. Castiel closed his eyes and felt for his grace, unable to summon it long enough to accomplish anything. It had been tightly sealed within him. With nothing left to do, he looked for a door and tried to jump off the desk, only to be caught by a quick hand. He was pulled up by the back of his neck to face a __familiar__ set of __leering__ eyes._

"My little fledging," _Belial chuckled, _"How the past centuries have changed you. I've bee hearing all about you lately."_ He was poked on the nose, _"Someone's been a naughty little angel."

_Castiel glared at the demon, which, judging from the amusement in his eyes, wasn't all that threatening at all. _

'_What do you want, Belial?' he hissed._

_To his dismay, Belial just laughed, _"Poor kitten. You can't expect me to feel threatened by your little mewls." _His grin went back to that perverted leer that made Castiel's fur stand on end, _"Although I must admit this look suits you better than I'd ever imagined." _He pulled Castiel closer, orange eyes examining Castiel's blue ones. _

_Acting on instinct, the small kitten scratched the demon's eye with an angry hiss._

_Belial pulled away with an angry grunt. _"You little—" _Castiel didn't hear more as he was mercilessly thrown against the nearest wall. Everything became blurred as he fell limply on the floor with a light thud._

_The demon's voice seemed to come from everywhere as Castiel tried to make sense of his surroundings again. _"It seems you still have a bit of grace in you, Castiel. I was careless." _He could hear Belial walking closer to him, but then a door opened somewhere to his right, and Castiel tried his hardest to push himself to his paws and limp towards his last chance of an escape._

_Before he could make it outside or Belial managed a curse of anger, a cool hand lifted him up with disturbing care. Castiel blinked his blue eyes up at the stranger, his vision still blurred. An amused hum reached his ears, and it was then that he recognized the polluted grace holding him._

"And how did you get here, Castiel?" _Lucifer asked calmly. A hand petted his head and sore back, and in Castiel couldn't help the quiet purr that escaped his tiny chest. _"I'd heard you'd ran into our brother and the Winchesters, Belial. I just didn't know you'd decided to take in the little one for yourself."

"I turned Michael's vessel into a mutt, it seemed appropriate at the time." _Belial answered. Not really giving an answer at all. _"It should keep him out of our hair for as long as you need. The spell won't fade unless I will it to."

_Lucifer hummed, still keeping his eyes on the little creature in his hands, an amused glint in his eyes as Castiel started falling asleep despite himself, giving in to the devil's careful touch. _"Or unless you're killed."

"That won't happen."

"See that it doesn't." _Lucifer turned around to leave, and Belial must have done something, because suddenly he glanced over his shoulder to look at the demon, an eyebrow raised in enquiry. _"What's the matter, Belial? I didn't know your want for Castiel lasted until now."

"You know what my intentions towards the fledging have always been." _That caused a spike of fear to travel up Castiel's spine, and he stirred uneasily in the devil's hands, feeling his legs tense with the urge to flee._

"It's distracting you."

"I'm leaving him in this shape until you take over the Earth, Lucifer."

_With another hum, Lucifer glanced down at the tiny creature, _"Yes, you will. Unless I can convince our brother to join or cause." _Castiel stiffened._

'_Lucifer—' he mewled._

"Hush, little brother. There will be time to discuss that. In the meantime, Belial, see that you finish your assignments. I will keep our brother company for a bit."

_Belial sounded angry, _"Luc—"

"I will return him shortly, Belial." _His voice lowered to a colder tone that made Castiel shiver with fear, _"I need to make sure his presence here is not distracting you from your duties."

* * *

><p>Gabriel was about to play the prank of the century on a preacher that had been tricking his flock with his hypocrisy when he felt the tug on his grace. It didn't take much to figure out who was calling him, and he rolled his eyes as he was dragged away from what could have been his latest masterpiece to Bobby Singer's boring house.<p>

"Okay. This is starting to get ridiculous. Do you _want _me to kill you for real this time?" He groaned as soon as he appeared in the middle of the old living room.

When instead of Dean's usual snarky response he got an angry growl, he chanced a look around and found the eldest Winchester's soul in the body of a pissed off looking German Shepherd.

He couldn't help it.

He laughed.

"Oh, this is just too good." He wiped a tear from his eyes, more than satisfied to see Sam's patented bitchface directed at him, "Alright, I'll bite. What did you two muttonheads do now?"

"Cas is missing." Sam replied instead.

Gabriel's chortling stopped mid-breath, and he turned golden eyes to look straight into Sam's hazel ones.

"What's that got to do with me?" He asked cautiously, a spark of worry igniting in his stomach despite himself, "Cassie's a big boy. He can take care of himself."

It was only then that he noticed the charred smell of burned feathers. Crowley was standing farther back, his eyes unusually serious despite the curl of his lips. "Belial has him."

Gabriel dropped all pretense of his Trickster persona and let worry flow through him.

"_What?"_


	2. Chapter 2

**A.N. **_Second chapter! Thank you so much for the reviews! Writing for animal characters is surprisingly hard. I'm thinking I might turn Dean back to normal before Cas though. I'm enjoying kitty!Cas a lot! Let me know what you think :)_

**Disclaimer: **_Supernatural and all its amazing characters are sadly not mine._

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><p>'<em>What, so now you're a dick <em>and _deaf?'_

Gabriel glared down at Dean. Even as a dog the guy was annoying as hell. His look seemed to be enough to shut him up though, as the mutt shrunk into himself with a surprised whine.

Oops.

Might have added some grace to that glare. Animals tended to react to it more easily than humans. Gabriel almost grinned at that, but all he could think of was the looks Belial had given his little brother when he was still in Heaven.

"So, you mind telling me how you idiots got my brother stuck with that pervert?"

Seriously. Gabriel might have been upset at Castiel for rebelling for the Winchesters, but hadn't he already done enough for them? After they got him back, Gabriel was taking Castiel with him and away from those cursed boys. Honestly, just being close to them was a safe bet that your life was as good as over.

"He took Dean and Cas by surprise on our last hunt. We didn't know it was him causing all the mess there."

Gabriel huffed, "Of course you didn't." He sighed, rolling his eyes in annoyance, "So what. Since my baby brother decided to tag along with a group of useless meat-sacks, now I get to get him out of your mess? Is that it?"

Dean glared at him, apparently smart enough not to try the growling crap again, and Sam was giving him a funny mix of his puppy look and the bitchface he'd mastered over the years.

"See, I told him. I was right." He narrowed his eyes at them, his smile not really reaching his eyes, something they all seemed to notice.

"…About what?" Sam finally asked.

"That you two buckos would be the death of him."

Silence followed his words, and he studied their faces searching for the guilt he expected to see there. At Dean's glare, he raised an eyebrow.

"What?"

'_Cas is not dead.'_ Gabriel rolled his eyes and snapped his fingers, a muzzle appearing out of nowhere, sealing Dean's snout shut. At least that would keep him quiet for a bit. If the muzzle had a little bit of grace in it to guarantee a lack of growling and snarling, well…Gabriel didn't have to mention that.

Crowley snickered, earning himself a glare from the dog, and bringing Gabriel's attention to the demon.

"And what exactly are _you_ doing with the Whinersters, Crow-Crow?"

"Protecting my investments."

"Awww, how sweet of you."

"Look," Sam ran a hand through his hair, growing more frustrated by the minute, "Can we just…_find Cas_ before something bad happens to him?"

Gabriel sneered at the younger hunter, "Oh, I can guarantee you something bad's already happened to him, Sam." His eyes glared at all the hunters present in the room, "And after I get him back, I'm taking him with me. Fair warning. He's not staying with you chuckleheads any longer."

"Just help us get him."

The archangel snorted, "Right, like I'm letting you and Lassie mess everything up. I'm going by myself." And before anyone could argue, he snapped his fingers and disappeared.

The room remained in an angry silence—which was only silent thanks to the magical muzzle keeping Dean from barking out curses until there was no tomorrow. Crowley sighed and clapped his hands.

"Well, that's one problem solved," he said, looking at everyone with his ever-present smirk on his lips, "How about a drink?"

* * *

><p>Gabriel appeared at the outskirts of a small, abandoned town. It was raining a hell of a lot, and his clothes and hair immediately got wet and stuck to his body.<p>

"Ugh. Great. Lil' bro's gonna owe me so much for this." He mumbled as he carefully searched for the little angel's grace. He found it not far from there. He frowned. Not only was it slowly moving away from the town, but it was so muted that he could barely feel it.

Spreading his wings, Gabriel moved South of the town, his heart clenching in his borrowed chest at the sight he found.

A small black kitten, wet to the bone and shivering, was limping slowly through the mud in his desperate attempt to flee the cursed town. Approaching the tiny creature carefully, so as to not frighten him more than he was, Gabriel crouched beside him.

"Castiel, what did they do to you?" he whispered, his voice quieted by the rain.

Blurry blue eyes blinked up at him, and it was a testament of the angel's weak state that he hadn't even felt him come.

With a care he hadn't shown in centuries, Gabriel took the shivering kitten in his arms, wincing at the quiet mewl that barely reached his ears.

'_G-Gabriel…'_

"Shhh…You did good, little brother." He soothed, watching sadly as the kitten closed his eyes and burrowed into the warmth of his grace.

Glaring back at the town, Gabriel dreaded the thought of what his brother had gone through to escape Belial's (and probably Lucifer's) clutches.

"I'll take care of you now."

Spreading his wings, Gabriel was seriously tempted to just fly to his own place and leave the Winchesters hanging with the guilt of their friend's disappearance. Still, he knew his tiny brother would not appreciate that, and he found himself giving in to what he knew would be Castiel's wishes.

* * *

><p>Sam had tried and given up to remove Dean's cursed muzzle more than enough times before Gabriel appeared again. He was drenched, but immediately dried himself with barely a thought.<p>

Castiel was nowhere in sight.

With a worried frown, San stood to his feet, and opened his mouth to ask where the angel was, but Dean got to Gabriel first. To Sam's surprise, the muzzle around his snout disappeared, and his brother smelled the archangel with a whine.

Before he could get a word out, Gabriel moved his hands from where he'd been cradling them to his chest, and Sam felt his stomach drop as understanding hit him.

A tiny kitten lied curled up in Gabriel's arms, from the way it was shivering—despite already being dry—Sam could tell it'd been out in the rain, wherever it was that Gabriel had gone to find it. And judging by Dean's reaction, the little kitten was none other than Castiel.

He was almost completely black, save for the white tips of his front paws and a small patch on his chest of the same color.

"Shit." He hissed before walking over to the unusually silent archangel. Just to make sure, he studied the small cat with worry, "Is it really—"

"Castiel. Yes."

Seeming to react to his name, the tiny angel blinked deep blue eyes open and looked blearily up at him.

A quiet mewl left Cas' mouth, and Sam felt his heart tighten at just how completely defenseless the angel was. Another worried whine from Dean directed the dazed kitten's attention to the dog staring up at him. Cas let out another meow in response, and Gabriel surprised Sam by offering the tiny cat to Dean. Without a second thought, Dean took the back of the kitten's neck between his jaws and carefully lifted him off the archangel's hands. With that, the dog walked away towards the stairs, and Sam could only guess he was taking Cas to one of the bedrooms upstairs.

Everyone watched the scene in silence, as soon as Dean and Cas disappeared, Sam looked back at the former Trickster.

"You're okay with that?"

Gabriel's eyes remained on the stairwell as he answered, his voice tinged with a sadness that Sam had never heard from him before, "Castiel's hurt. And I can't heal him." He sighed. "Figured I'd let your brother fuss over him for a bit before I let you take a look at him. I don't think it's anything serious."

Sam nodded, glancing at the stairs again before turning his eyes back to the archangel, "You really can't heal him?" he asked quietly.

"No, Sam, I just decided to let my baby brother suffer some more," he snarked without much bite. Sam had never seen him like this before, "I don't know what that bastard did to him. But his grace is sealed inside him, and whatever spell turned him into a cat repels my grace, so I can't turn him back to normal either. I assume the same will happen with Dean."

The hunter sighed and turned to look at Bobby, whose eyes were still fixed on the old stairwell with a thoughtful expression.

Once again, the silence was broken by Crowley, "Well. One big happy family are we then?" At Sam's halfhearted glare, he sighed, "Alright. I imagine Belial will not be happy about his darling's escape." He glanced at Gabriel, "I'll keep an ear out." They blinked and he was gone.

Sam ran a hand through his hair; he'd go check on Dean and Cas in a bit. He figured the only one who could ask Cas about what happened was his brother, and spending time with the angel would calm Dean down.

* * *

><p><em>Dean climbed carefully on his bed, lying down and gently placing the tiny kitten between his front legs without a word.<em>

'_Dean.' Cas sighed quietly, 'Dean, I'm fine.'_

'_The hell you are,' he growled, 'Now sit still.'_

_The hunter took his time examining his friend, wrinkling his snout at the smell of blood and unable to stop a quiet whine when the angel flinched under the careful probing of his nose. The kitten must have had some ugly bruises under his black fur._

'_What did he do to you?' he asked quietly, new instincts telling him to clean Cas' wounds the only way a dog knows how._

'_Nothing.'_

'Cas_.'_

_After a quiet pause, the little angel answered honestly, 'He threw me against a wall,' he mewled, flinching at Dean's barely contained snarl._

_Forcing his anger down, Dean nudged the scared kitten gently, 'What about the blood?'_

_Cas shivered, obviously still shaken by what had happened. Throwing stupid human issues aside, Dean gave into his protective canine instincts and licked the side of the kitten's head. Cas closed his eyes at the caring gesture and relaxed almost immediately. Any other time and Dean would have felt awkward about this breach of his no-chick-flick-moments policy. But hell, he was stuck as a freaking dog, might as well let himself act like one for a while. Besides, Cas would probably have some kitten-ish instincts of his own to deal with anyway. _

'_It wasn't easy to escape.' He finally said, 'I had to run past their Hell Hounds.' Dean's ears lowered back, 'It's…harder to see them with my grace sealed.'_

'_I'm sorry, Cas.' He apologized with a whine, getting on with cleaning the little kitten's wounds._

_Cas closed his eyes as he tried to sit still and let Dean take care of him._

_They stayed like that, in a comfortable silence for a while. Dean was lost in his own thoughts of revenge and anger when he noticed a quiet sound vibrating off the kitten's chest._

_Unable to contain his awed amusement, Dean paused his cleaning to look down at the tiny angel, 'Cas,' he grinned, 'Are you _purring_?'_

_The sound stopped, and sleepy blue eyes blinked up at him. Castiel stared at the amused dog for a moment before answering, 'It feels pleasant.'_

_Dean couldn't help but laugh, the sound came out as some sort of huff, and he couldn't help but wonder if he'd seen a dog laugh before. Nudging the kitten off balance with his nose, he chuckled as Cas just curled up into a little ball and shook his head before proceeding to clean his wounds. Seconds later Cas was purring like an engine, and Dean was already thinking of jokes he'd be able to tease the angel with once they got back to normal._

* * *

><p>Sam waited about half an hour before venturing upstairs to check on his brother and their angel. Rubbing his face as he stood by the door, he sighed and opened it quietly. He couldn't really suppress the awed smile that tugged on his lips at the sight that greeted him.<p>

Dean—_his brother, Dean Winchester—_was passed out on the bed, a tiny kitten curled up by his head, shielded by one of the dogs front legs.

_Damn it, I need a camera._

Sure that any more movement would wake them up, he carefully pulled out his phone and snapped a picture of the dozing pair. Letting out a snort at the amount of blackmail he'd be able to get away with for a while, he put his phone back in his pocket and slowly approached the bed.

Castiel was sleeping peacefully, although the fact that he needed sleep at all was cause for concern as it was. While it didn't look like he had any wounds, there was only so much Dean could do for Cas in this shape. With a small sigh, he slowly reached for the kitten. Who would have thought he'd ever be in a situation like this? Honestly. Only their family.

Before he'd even grazed the tiny angel's fur, a deep growl vibrated from Dean's chest, making Sam snap his hand back with a start. Taking a moment to calm down—his brother had scared the crap out of him—, he looked at the dog.

Dean's eyes were watching him carefully, although Sam wasn't sure if it was completely Dean or his animal instincts taking over. Lifting his hands as a sign of surrender, he took a small step towards the bed. The growling started again, and Sam heaved a sigh.

"Dean, it's just me. It's _Sam_. I just wanna take a look at Cas, make sure he's okay."

Dean raised his head to look at him suddenly, and Sam just knew it was Dean again. Letting his shoulders relax, he took another step towards the bed, relieved to see that Dean really trusted him this time.

He tentatively reached for the kitten again, and Dean made no move other than direct his eyes to Cas, who was now awake and watching Sam curiously with wide blue eyes, a slight tilt to his head that made Sam smile. It really _was_ Cas.

"Hey, Cas. I know you probably want to sleep, but I'm gonna have to make sure you're alright first. Kay?"

Sam watched as Castiel closed his eyes and curled up to sleep again. Dean huffed and nudged Cas with his snout, pushing him out of the safety of his paws. The kitten tripped over Dean's leg and stood clumsily, looking back to give Dean a very Castiel-like glare.

With a fascinated chuckle, Sam grinned at them both, "It's okay, Cas. I'll let you sleep as soon as I'm done, I promise."

The cat looked at him, as though deliberating whether he was telling the truth. After a moment, Cas seemed satisfied enough, and started walking to the edge of the bed. Sam could tell he was ready to jump down and practically caught him in the air.

"Whoa, easy there, tiger."

Dean, who had been watching with what could only be an amused expression, huffed and yawned widely and stretched before hopping off the bed. He must have said something to tease Cas, because the angel was glaring down at him from Sam's hands, his small tail twitching angrily.

"Alright, take it easy you two. Let's just go downstairs and figure out how we get you back to normal." He carried the kitten downstairs, cradling him as gently as he could, careful not to hurt him in case he had any wounds hidden under his fur. Dean followed him eagerly, his tail wagging slightly, and Sam had to wonder if they were talking as they reached the first floor.

Once he walked into the living room, he immediately noticed the absence of a certain archangel.

"Where'd Gabriel go?" He asked Bobby as he joined him at his desk.

"What do I look like, his secretary?" Bobby grouched, taking his attention off an old book to watch as Sam placed Cas on the desk. The angel sat quietly, looking up at Bobby with his usual intense stare, the tip of his tail the only thing moving. That could mean annoyance as much as amusement as far as Sam could understand.

He'd have to ask Gabriel if there was some way to let them understand what they were saying without having him or Crowley there to translate.

"So he's really gone and gotten himself cat-ified, huh?"

"Yep." Sam sighed, glancing at Dean, who was sitting next to his chair, his attention focused on Bobby and Cas. "You had any luck?" He asked, nodding towards the book.

"You don't think I would've told you if I had?" The old hunter replied, taking off his reading glasses to look at Castiel more closely.

The kitten had apparently lost his patience. As Sam and Bobby watched him, he stood and walked over to the book Bobby had been reading, moving to the old hunter's side of the desk to sit in front of the ancient tome and…as far as they could tell, start reading.

Bobby raised his eyebrows in amusement, "Would you like at that," he let out a chuckle, "Someone's eager to get to work."

Dean huffed, and Sam could almost hear him commenting on Cas being a workaholic. Turning his eyes back to the kitten, he felt the urge to pet him. Cas was just really…_cute _like this. It was freaking weird to think about, but there was no denying the little cat was adorable. Glancing at Dean, he paused at seeing his brother staring at him with what he could swear was a knowing look. Something like protectiveness in his eyes. Well, damn. If he gave in and scratched Cas' ears, he wouldn't be the only one with blackmail material.

Unable to help himself, he raised an eyebrow, "Down, boy."

Dean let out a quiet growl, letting him know just how funny he found that. Sam raised his hands and laughed apologetically as Dean narrowed his eyes at him and lifted his front paws to look more easily at Cas.

"Uh uh. Paws down, idjit. Desk is old enough as it is." Bobby patted the dog's snout less than delicately, which immediately made Dean drop back down on all fours. With a frustrated groan, he padded away to the sofa and hopped onto it before flopping down on his side, deliberately turning away from them.

Sam chuckled and glanced back at Bobby, looking down to see Cas watching Dean with cat-like amusement, tail moving side to side. The sight made him smile, and he raised an eyebrow when Bobby's finger scratched under the kitten's chin. Before he could tease the old hunter, the sound of purring drove his attention back to Castiel. His tiny eyes were closed, head lifted to allow Bobby to pet him more easily.

"Huh." He chuckled; amused to see how easily Cas had taken to his new feline instincts.

"Well, not that this isn't adorable enough to be puke-worthy, but seriously? I leave you alone for an hour and you're already all over the new pets?" Gabriel's voice was a blend of amusement and annoyance.

Dean barely acknowledged the archangel, but Castiel immediately stood on all fours and padded over to the edge of the desk with a high pitched mewl. Sam was doing his best to keep his hands busy and away from the adorable kitten. Casting a glance at the archangel, Sam blushed and looked away at the knowing look the archangel had fixated on him, clearing his throat. Stupid mind-reading mojo.

Whatever Gabriel had to say to comment on that was stopped by disapproving mewl from Cas.

"Yeah, I know, Cassie-cat, but it's not like I've been sitting on my thumbs either." Sam watched the conversation between the cat and the angel curiously.

After another meow, Gabriel raised his eyebrows, "You know, that's actually a good idea." A pause, "Oh, don't look at me like that! Okay, fine. I may have thought about it before, but come on. It's nothing short of hysterical to see them try to guess what you're saying." Gabriel rolled his eyes and sighed, "Fine, fine, I'm on it."

The archangel snapped his fingers, and Sam looked around to try to find whatever Gabriel had changed.

'_Thank you, Gabriel.'_

That…was Castiel's voice. Sam's eyes widened and he turned to Bobby to make sure he wasn't hearing things, but the old hunter was also staring at the kitten like he'd taken out a pair of maracas and started to sing.

"Did you—" the younger hunter sputtered, "Can we really—"

'_Great, now Gigantor's about to have a nerdgasm. Nice job, Gabe.'_ Sam gaped at his brother, who was staring at him from his spot on Bobby's old couch.

Gabriel snickered, "Calm down, Sammy. I planned to stuff the dog and cat speech dictionary into your brains eventually. Thank Cassie that I did it before something really embarrassing happened."

Sam just gawked at both animals and at the archangel with an awed expression, Bobby just shook his head and grumbled something about idjit archangel before focusing back on his book.

Gabriel winked at Sam and walked over to the desk, offering a hand to his brother, who stepped onto it like it was totally normal. "You look better, lil' bro." he grinned and moved to the sofa, placing the kitten on top of Dean's head. "Did cuddle-time with Deano work its magic?"

'_Bite me.'_

"Oh, this is gonna be _fun_," Gabriel laughed, and Sam got down from his momentary amazement to dread just what kind of pranks the former Trickster with play on Dean while he was stuck as a dog.

Running a hand through his hair and slumping back on his chair, Sam heaved a long breath.

He could only hope none of these involved Dean's fur getting turned pink. That would only make his brother unbearable; which would involve a lot of barking.

A mischievous chuckle brought his attention back to the archangel. The spark in his eyes let Sam know that he's just read his thoughts again.

_Damn it._

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><p><em>More action will come in the next chapters<br>_


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